Random Ramblings of an Incoherent Mind

Tokyo Trip – Day 8

Day 8, the last day, was one filled with fun and hillariousness. The day was as usual spent in training. Post training, C, J and I headed off to Tokyo Towers. My plan was to go to Tokyo Towers, buy the souvenirs, have dinner, then head to Akihara Bara and then Asakusa. Tokyo Towers coz I wanted souvenirs, Ahikara Bara as it is supposed to be an IT hub and I wanted to see it well knowing that the shops would be closed and Asakusa as it is the old Tokyo and I wanted to see something of Tokyo other than modern sky scrapers. C and J liked my plan and decided to accompany me.

Oh, I must talk about lunch. Lunch was not packed but on our own, so I decided to have Subway as being Sunday, most shops in that area was closed. Well, the Subway was damn good. I had something called an avocado veggie subway with wasabi-soy sauce as dressing. This is the season for avocado, so a lot of food in Japan includes avocado. There is avocado salad, avocado dressing, avocado mash, avocado pasta and the list goes on…

Anyway, the sub was delicious. The wasabi-soy sauce added a tangy flavour which was delicious. In fact, so much so that my mouth is watering as I type!

To continue, went to Tokyo Towers and bought my shotglass. Then we had dinner. C and J tried out the Japanese Mac while I had pasta (the only vegetarian option available there without a Japanese guide to explain). The Japanese Mac was slightly different from the SG one in that their fillets were not fish based but prawn based. The pasta I had was quite oily, though equally authentic.

We then headed up the Tokyo Tower which is a replica of the Eiffel tower except that it is longer and higher (by around 1000 tonnes). The view is the view of Tokyo and nothing great considering that I had seen the Eiffel. The one thing Tokyo Tower had was something called ‘Lookout Glass’ which was a glass on the floor which allows you to see all the way down. Now that was crazy.

We then took the train to Akihara Bara where S joined us. As expected, the whole area was closed and we did not spend too much time there. We then decided to go to Asakusa.

Asakusa is supposed to have the old Tokyo feel in terms of architecture and the like. Thus, the number of temples in old Tokyo is much more and though the temples would be closed, I still wanted to see whatever I could from outside.

And what a good decision that was. At the control station in the subway, one of the directions said ‘Sensoji Temple’, and not knowing anything better, we headed in that direction. I still do not know was god/goddess the temple is dedicated too but the exterior of the temple was awesome. It was huge and spacious and made completely of wood. There were paintings and motifs all over the place and temple had a feel of peace and serenity. A place worth going to.

At 2345, we realised that the last trains run at midnight and ran back to the station. We took the last train and whewed in relief as the train was a direct one and thus there was no need to worry about any connecting train stopping for the night. A relief come too soon.

The train we took apparently stopped at Ueno, one of the stations on the way. It did not go any further. Fortunately, Ueno is also a connecting station and we ran towards the Hibiya line, hoping to take the last train to Kamiyacho; our stop. Well, missed that too!!!

By that time, the two boys were hungry again from all that running and we headed to a convenience store to get some food. Post which we took the cab back.

Cabs in Tokyo are extremely expensive. They start at 700 Yen, which is 10 SGD. And for 700 yen, the door opens on its own 🙂

Well, so we had a bet on how much the fare would cost in the end and I won. I had bet around 4000 yen and it cost 3990 yen 🙂

Well, after that slight bit of adventure, I headed back to the hotel for a nice hot tub bath. I also washed my hair as it was dirty and I know I would be too tired to wash my hair once I reach SG. Hit the bed at 130, got up at 7 and went to the airport and back home!!!